On an earlier page, page 1, I indicated that I would assemble some
more extensive descriptive material for you about Abu Simbel. On this page I hope to let you read of the amazing UNESCO
project, which saved the Temples of Abu Simbel from inundation by the waters of Lake Nasser. Links to additional Abu Simbel data are
at the bottom of the page.

These page will further expand as I introduce additional data. But a reminder as always. This page and the
site to which the above link takes you, are designed for a 1024 x 768 screen setting.

But first on this page another composite image that I hope you will enjoy. At top left is another image
taken on an expedition conducted in the early 1900s by the Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago. This 1906 image
is, of course, of the head of Ramesses II. It shows Dr. James Henry Breasted, along with his wife Frances
& son Charles
measuring the statue. I am sure that the image is still somewhere on the University of Chicago site.
But I cannot locate it in 2009, as this site must move to a new location.
Beneath that is the cover of the Oct. 23, 1965 issue of
'Life
Magazine' which contained, I understand, an article about the Temple relocation project. The main image is of the Great Temple
as it was before the 'move', from an old issue of 'Horizon' magazine, I understand. And last, but not least, a couple of small images
~ the Temple
depicted on an Egyptian 1 pound bank note & a camel. How's that for variety!

I was interested to read that the original plan to save Abu Simbel
was to leave it 'in situ' & build a dam around it to hold back the waters of Lake Nasser. For reasons unknown to me, but probably due to
cost considerations, that plan was shelved.

The following words (slightly modified from the original)
describe better than I can, the
relocation project for the Abu Simbel temples. What I repeat here is a part only of an
article that appeared in
'Horus', the inflight magazine of Egyptair. The author is
Dr. Zahi A. Hawass, presently, I believe, Secretary General of the
Supreme Council of Antiquities and Director of the Giza Pyramids Excavation. A familiar face indeed to me
& probably to you
also from his many television appearances, his speeches around the world & his obvious enthusiasm for his subject. His
book about Abu Simbel was, it
would seem, published
in 2001 by the American University in Cairo Press.

"In the 1950s, the Egyptian government decided to replace the
current small dam
at Aswan with a much larger dam. This was to be constructed of rock, and was to
measure 3,600 metres long, 40 metres wide, 180 metres at its base, and rise to a
height of 104 metres above sea level. Floods to a height of 182 metres can be
held back by the dam. The artificial lake created by the dam ~ "Lake Nasser" ~
extends 500 km. in length, south beyond the Second Cataract, and is up
to 25 km. in width.

The building of the Aswan High Dam began in 1960 and
was completed in 1964. It represents one of Egypt's most successful national
projects since the age of the pyramids. Despite the many benefits of the
projected High Dam, Egypt faced the huge problem of saving the archaeological
sites that would disappear under the waters of the expanded reservoir. These
monuments included not only major temples such as those of Abu Simbel, but also
chapels and settlement remains, stelae, inscriptions, and as-yet undiscovered
sites. The Egyptian government recognized that a timely salvage campaign must be
devised with international support, and the help of UNESCO was sought. The
response was overwhelming: committees and researchers from over twenty countries
worked together for twenty years on the salvage of the Nubian monuments.

The successful Nubian campaign prompted other countries to petition
UNESCO to help save their own monuments. Campaigns were mounted to help preserve
Venice, Italy, the Acropolis in Greece, the ancient city of Mohenjodaro in
Pakistan, Barabudur in Indonesia, and Fez in Morocco. The salvaging of the Abu
Simbel temples was carried out in seven stages:

1) A temporary dam was
built in front of the two temples to protect them from the rising water. This dam
was 730 metres long and 37 metres high, and was built from 38,000 cubic metres of sandstone.
The front of the Great Temple was covered with sand to protect the
giant statues from the pressure that resulted when the walls behind them were
covered with scaffolding to prepare them for removal.

2) More than
150,000 cubic metres of rock was moved from the two cliffs above the temples.

3) The stones, statues, and columns of the temples were cut into giant
pieces ranging from 3 to 20 tons in weight, each with a height of 3 metres and a
length of 5 metres. The great Temple was cut into 807 pieces, while the small
Temple was cut into 225 blocks.

4) After the new site was prepared, the
large blocks from the temple were lifted to the new chosen site.

5) The
two temples were rebuilt on their new site, with the original orientations
reproduced carefully. The most moving moment of this operation was in March of
1967, when the crowns of Ramesses II were placed atop the giant statues in front
of the temple. This was a great moment that no one involved in the project will
ever forget: the most advanced technology of the 20th century was used to save
one of the most amazing achievements of a civilization that preceded it by 3,300
years.

6) Two concrete domes were built above the temples to protect
them from the weight of the rocks that were piled above them. The dome above the
Great Temple is the largest manmade dome in the world, with a circumference of
60 metres and a height of 22 metres.

7) Artificial hillocks were built
above the two temples to recreate their original setting. These hillocks used a
total of 230,000 cubic metres of sandstone.

The project cost 42 million
dollars and was concluded in less than five years. It was started in November of
1963 and finished in September 1968, - months before the ending date that was
originally estimated. No stone was lost or damaged, no changes were made, and
the temples appear exactly as they were uncovered by Belzoni a century and half
earlier.

These two temples are some of the most remarkable achievements
of the ancient world, only slightly less impressive than the Great Pyramid of
Khufu. They were first seen by modern Western eyes in 1813, when the Swiss
traveller Jean Louis Burckhardt noted them, and
first partially cleared in 1817 by Belzoni, who was the first modern
Egyptologist to enter the temples. The temples were visited by other early
Egyptologists such as Champollion, Lepsuis, and Rossilline; in 1910, the
Italian engineer Barsanti succeeded in clearing the sand completely away from
the facade of the Great Temple. A steady trickle of visitors continued to make
the journey into Nubia to see the temples, but it was not until the UNESCO
Salvage Campaign that the temples became one of the most popular sites for
travelers to Egypt. In the book stores in Egypt you will find my most recent
book on the site called, "The Mysteries of Abu Simbel: The Temples of the Rising
Sun".

And next another painting, of the main interior passage
of the Great Temple, by David Roberts, R.A. (1796-1864). I was interested to read that the artist, who also painted
the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem, was permitted to do so only after ridding his brushes of hogs' hairs.

And below, a composite image which could be termed "Day and
Night". On the left (below) a fine image of a Spanish tour group,
from Valencia, I believe, at the main temple. I trust nobody will object
to my using the image here. And on the right a night image taken, I presume,
during a "Sound and Light" performance. As I see the group image, & in particular the gentleman in Arab dress in
the back row, I am reminded of the fancy dress evening on our boat trip on the Nile. I was persuaded to dress in a similar
costume which we purchased in the market at Esna. Let us
just say that I did not look as good as an Arab Sheik as did Peter O'Toole in 'Lawrence of Arabia'! But our Spanish friend does
look good. Ole!

I could not locate, for these pages, an image of Peter O'Toole, but I did find the
'original'. At left above is a
portrait of T. E. Lawrence by James McBey, the Official War Artist, painted in Damascus in Oct. 1918, on the day before Lawrence
returned to England.